Ava Reid

A dark, evocative and unforgettable fantasy debut steeped in Hungarian history and Jewish mythology, perfect for fans of Naomi Novik and Katherine Arden. /// Stories don't have to be true to be real. . . . In her forest-veiled pagan village, Évike is the only woman without power. Outcasted and betrayed by her fellow villagers, Évike is surrendered as sacrifice to the Holy Order of Woodsmen. . . . But when monsters attack the Woodsmen and their captive, slaughtering everyone but Évike and the cold, one-eyed captain, they have no choice but to rely on each other. Except he’s no ordinary Woodsman—he’s the disgraced prince, Gáspár Bárány. As the son of a reviled foreign queen, Gáspár understands what it’s like to be an outcast, and he and Évike make a tenuous pact to stop his brother from seizing the throne. . . . As their mission takes them from the bitter northern tundra to the smog-choked capital, their mutual loathing slowly turns to affection, bound by a shared history of alienation and oppression. But trust can easily turn to betrayal, and Évike and Gáspár need to decide whose side they're on, and what they're willing to give up for a nation that never cared for them at all.

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